The propellers of many marine outboard engines can be operated in two opposite directions of rotation resulting in forward or reverse motion of the watercraft. The propeller is mounted on a propeller shaft and operated by rotation of the propeller shaft by a rotating driveshaft extending from the engine. The propeller shaft is attached to a transmission that converts rotation of the vertically oriented driveshaft to rotation of the horizontally disposed propeller shaft.
A linear or rotary actuator is used to selectively actuate the transmission thereby placing the propeller shaft in forward, reverse or neutral operating conditions. Whether actuated with a linear actuator or a rotary actuator, the actuator is typically mounted in the midsection or the powerhead and a vertical coupling rod extending down from the actuator through the midsection couples the actuator with the transmission for actuation of the transmission.
Marine outboard engines are often provided in different lengths of midsections. This necessitates the use of different lengths of coupling rods, and therefore complicates the manufacture of outboard engines as different gear cases have to be used for each model with a particular length of midsection. Thus, there is a need for a gear case assembly for a marine outboard engine that can be used with outboard engine models having different midsection lengths.
In addition, the process of assembling a gear case assembly entailing the installation of a multitude of interconnected components installed within the tightly confined spaces of the gear case can be a complicated task. There is thus also a need for a gear case that can be assembled and disassembled easily.